The present invention relates to an electrical connector assembly, and particularly to an electrical connector assembly having improved shielding members which can be reliably and efficiently assembled together and to a dielectric housing of the connector assembly.
Taiwan Patent Application No. 85212192 discloses a related art Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector assembly. The USB connector assembly comprises an insulative housing, a plurality of terminals received in the housing, and shielding plates covering and shielding the housing. The housing comprises an upper body, a lower body and a partition formed between the upper body and the lower body and substantially separating the upper body and the lower body. The terminals are separately assembled in the upper body and the lower body of the housing. The shielding plates comprise an outer plate covering the housing, a clip plate fitted to the partition for preventing electromagnetic interference between the terminals respectively assembled in the upper body and the lower body of the housing, and a back plate attached to a back of the housing. A pair of latches on opposite sides of the clip plate clamp side portions of the outer plate. However, the assembly of the shielding plates is not secure enough to provide an integral and reliable shielding of the electrical connector assembly. Furthermore, the assembling thereof is laborious and inconvenient, causing the assembly efficiency to be poor.
Hence, an improved shielding structure for an electrical connector assembly is required to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.
A first object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector assembly having a separable shield part, which can be interchangeably used with an independent conventional connector, therefore saving manufacturing cost and facilitating management of parts inventory.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector assembly having improved shielding parts which can be more securely engaged with one another.
A third object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector assembly which is easy to assemble.
An electrical connector assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises an insulative housing having an upper body and a lower body, a plurality of terminals secured within the insulative housing, and a shield covering the housing. The shield comprises a first part, a second part and a third part. The upper body and the lower body of the housing are respectively secured in the first and second parts. The third part covers a back of the housing and is assembled together with the first and second parts. A pair of recess portions is defined in opposite side faces of the lower body. A pair of lower flaps is correspondingly formed on opposite side faces of the first part for being received in the recess portions of the housing. A pair of hooks extends downwardly and forwardly from a front and lower end of both side faces of the first part. A pair of ears is formed on opposite ends of a front edge of a top face of the second part for being engaged with the hooks of the first part. A spacing slot and two slots are defined between the upper body and the lower body of the housing, and a hole is defined in the lower body of the housing. A pair of latches separately extends from the top face and a lower face of the second part for being engaged with the spacing slot and the hole of the housing. A pair of protrusions extends from the top face of the second part for being engaged with the slots of the housing. A pair of clips and a pair of resilient tabs formed on the third part respectively engage with a pair of securing holes of the first part and a pair of rectangular holes of the second part.